Since shortly after confederation, Nova Scotia has had a two party system with power alternating between the Liberals and Conservatives

Though the CCF/NDP has a long history in Nova Scotia it was unable to break the two party system and win more than a handful of seats (if any) in the Nova Scotia legislature until the 1990s.

In 1980 Alexa McDonough became leader of the Nova Scotia NDP, the first female leader of a major party in Canada. While she was sometimes the only NDPer in the legislature and had, at most a caucus of four MLAs she raised the party's profile and laid the basis for its breakthrough in the 1990s under Robert Chisolm who succeeded McDonough as provincial NDP leader in 1996.

Under Chisolm's leadership, in 1998 the party won 19 seats in the Nova Scotia legislature, the same number as the Liberals who were able to form a minority government with the support of the Progressive Conservatives. The prospect of an NDP government seemed imminent.

However, the party was unable to improve in the 1999 election but with 11 seats in the legislature with 29.9% of the vote, edged the Liberals and were able to hold Official Opposition status while the Tories formed a majority government under John Hamm.

The 2003 election resulted in a Tory minority government with the NDP maintaining Official Opposition status under new leader Darrell Dexter who took the party up to 15 seats and 31% of the vote. The political scene in Nova Scotia remains tightly divided among the three parties with any poised to form government.

See also: List of political parties in Canada

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